Putin confirms Snowden still in Russia in transit

At a joint news conference with Finnish President Sauli Niinistö, Vladimir V. Putin confirmed, on 25 June late afternoon, that Edward Snowden had arrived in transit "in Russia."

The Russian President pointed out that the US national did not need a visa to transit Russian territory; his arrival from Hong Kong caught Moscow by surprise; and that there is no bilateral extradition treaty between Russia and the USA. He noted that Mr. Snowden was not a wanted man in Russia where he had committed no crime and that there was no reason to arrest him.

Vladimir Putin was careful not to indicate the final destination of the most wanted man in the United States.

Classified as a "traitor" by U.S. officials or "whistleblower" by his supporters, Edward Snowden is a U.S. dissident who leaked documents from the National Security Agency proving the militarized nature of the regime in Washington, where military intelligence services have more power than the president and democratically elected institutions.

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